Where depth permits, it appears that spotted bass usually stay deeper than smallmouths. Because of the difficulty in recognizing the species, it is probable that record-size specimens of spotted bass have gone unnoticed.The smallmouth bass is known to hybridize in nature with the spotted bass, which could make identification of some specimens where both species are known to occur, even more difficult. Juveniles of the species resemble the young of smallmouth bass in having a broad band of orange at the base of the tail, followed by a broad black band and white edge. The spotted bass also has all black spots below the lateral line (the rear edges of certain scales are black) unlike either the largemouth or the smallmouth.

The spotted bass is also often confused with the smallmouth bass, but lacks the vertical bars that are present on the sides of the body in the smallmouth. The spotted bass, like all black basses except the largemouth, has scales on the base portion of the second dorsal fin, its first and second dorsal fin are clearly connected, and its upper jaw bone does not extend back to or beyond the rear edge of the eyes. Many anglers who catch a spotted bass believe they have caught a largemouth bass, undoubtedly because the coloration is similar, both having a greenish hue and a broad stripe of diamonds or blotches along the midline of the body.

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